Networked “smart home” devices continue to grow in popularity, providing increasing levels of functionality and convenience. For example, traditional light bulbs and lighting fixtures are increasingly being replaced with light-emitting diode (LED) based bulbs and fixtures, which may be networked together in order to provide features such as remote control from a smart phone and basic automation. In addition, devices such as door locks, thermostats, connected power outlets, and media remote controls are now being network connected to add features beyond what has previously been possible. Due to the large variety of these devices, there is now an emerging market for home automation “hubs”, which are capable of communicating with a variety of these devices in order to provide a user with a single place to control all of their devices. While many of these home automation “hubs” accomplish this task, they are often discrete devices that must be separately added to a network. One type of home automation “hub” may provide voice control over one or more “smart home” devices. Referred to herein as a voice control appliance, these devices respond to voice commands by providing audible feedback or changing the settings of one or more “smart home” devices connected thereto. For example, the Amazon Echo is one such device that has gained popularity in recent years. While such devices may provide convenient “voice assistant” functionality, they are generally only capable of listening for voice commands in a relatively small space. That is, an installation may require several of these voice control appliances placed around a space in order to adequately hear voice commands issued by a user throughout the space. Providing voice control appliances in this manner may not only be unsightly, but may be impractical in some scenarios due to the fact that they generally require access to a power outlet which may not be available. Environmental obstructions may interfere with the ability of these voice control appliances to recognize voice commands due to the required placement of such a standalone device in a particular location.
Accordingly, there is a need for an improved way to communicate with networked “smart home” devices and distribute the control thereof within a space.